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TimeLine: 2010

January 10, 2010

  • Owl City's single from the current album, entitled "Fireflies", enters the Australian Singles Chart at number 38, and soon after tops the chart at number 1.

January 11, 2010

  • Owl City's new single from the current album, entitled "Vanilla Twilight", enters the Australian Singles Chart at number 50, which happens to coincide with "Fireflies" holding its reign as the number 1 hit single.

January 18, 2010

January 19, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Omaha, NE at the Music Hall, Omaha Civic Auditorium.

January 20, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Manhattan, KS at the K-State McCain Auditorium.

January 21, 2010

  • Owl City performs with Lights in Kansas City, MI at the Beaumont Club.

January 22, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Oklahoma City, OK at the Diamond Ballroom.

  • An article is published by The Oklahoman where Adam is interviewed by George Lang. In the interview, Adam talks about the surprise success he garnered seemingly overnight, as well as his insomnia that keeps him writing into the night.

January 23, 2010

  • Owl CIty performs with Lights in St. Louis, MO at The Pageant.

January 24, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Indianapolis, IN at the Murat Center.

January 26, 2010

  • Owl City's single from the current album entitled "Vanilla Twilight" is released. The song attained chart placement prior to the release date, following the success the previous single "Fireflies".

  • Adam, on "Vanilla Twilight": "I met the most charming girl imaginable when I was in high school and most of my 'cozy' songs are about her. She moved away to college for a few years and we kind of lost touch. She and I recently started talking to each other again and life has a way of reshaping sometimes. I'm absolutely crazy about her. The song is probably the oldest on the album. I wrote it when I first started in 2007 and I kept on tweaking it. When I needed a ballad for the album, I switched some words around and it fit perfectly."

  • Kidz Bop 17 is released by Concord Music. The album features a cover of the Owl City hit single, "Fireflies".

  • Owl City's third studio album, Ocean Eyes, is released in a deluxe edition. The release includes a second disc containing various singles that were initially excluded from the original album, such as "Sunburn" and "Strawberry Avalanche". It also features four new tracks, including a remix of "Hello Seattle".

  • Owl City performs with Lights in Madison, WI at the Majestic Theatre.

January 27, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Cincinnati, OH at the 20th Century Theatre.

January 28, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Columbus, OH at Newport Music Hall.

January 29, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Towson, MD at Recher Theatre.

January 30, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Norfolk, VA at The NorVa.

February 1, 2010

  • Adam creates a new MySpace account and page for his Sky Sailing project.

  • Owl City performs in Charleston, SC at Music Farm.

February 2, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Jacksonville, FL at Freebird Live.

February 3, 2010

  • Owl City performs in St. Petersburg, FL at State Theatre.

February 4, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Fort Lauderdale, FL at Culture Room.

February 5, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Orlando, FL at the House of Blues.

February 6, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Athens, GA at The Melting Point.

February 8, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Birmingham, AL at WorkPlay Theatre.

February 9, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Baton Rouge, LA at Varsity Theatre.

February 10, 2010

  • Owl City performs with Lights in Little Rock, AR at Revolution Music Room.

February 11, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Chicago, IL at Valparaiso University.

February 12, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Indiana, PA at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

February 13, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Grantham, PA at Brubaker Auditorium, Messiah College.

February 14, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Baltimore, MD at UMBC.

February 17, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Brighton, England at Komedia.

February 18, 2010

  • Owl City performs in London, England at the Electric Ballroom.

February 19, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Oxford, England at O2 Academy.

February 20, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Newcastle upon Tyne, England at O2 Academy.

February 21, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Birmingham, England at O2 Academy.

February 22, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Manchester, England at Manchester Academy.

February 24, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Amsterdam, Holland at Melkweg.

February 25, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Brussels, Belgium at Le Botanique - Salle de I'Orangerie.

February 26, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Paris, France at Le Nouveau Casino.

February 27, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Cologne, Germany at Gloria.

February 28, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Munich, Germany at 59:1.

March 1, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Berlin, Germany at Magnet Club.

March 2, 2010

  • The soundtrack to the film Alice in Wonderland, entitled Almost Alice (Music Inspired by the Motion Picture), is released. The album features the Owl City song entitled "The Technicolor Phase".

  • Owl City performs in Copenhagen, Denmark at Amager Bio.

March 4, 2010

  • MusicRadar publishes an article where Adam does a Q&A for Joe Bosso, where he discusses the surprise success of his hit single, entitled"Fireflies", his music production process, as well as the difference between writing music for himself and writing for others.

  • Adam: "It was almost more fun than I could handle. I was writing music for no one's ears but my own. I was my own worst critic and never was the process lonely or depressing. It was really entirely the opposite. I feel like I have a lot more purpose behind writing songs these days, but being an independent artist was really a wonderful thing."

March 12, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Auckland, New Zealand at Auckland Town Hall.

March 14, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Manila, Philippines at TriNoma.

March 16, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Sydney, New South Wales at UNSW Roundhouse.

March 17, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Brisbane, Queensland at The Tivoli.

March 19-20, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Melbourne, Victoria at The HiFi.

March 21, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Perth, Western Australia at Metro City.

March 22, 2010

  • Owl City uploads a new music video for the song, "Vanilla Twilight" to its YouTube channel. The video features a cameo appearance by Shaquille O'Neal, and is directed by Steve Hoover and filmed on location in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as well as the Marblehead Lighthouse in Ohio.

March 26, 2010

  • The Spokesman-Review publishes an article where Adam is interviewed by Isamu Jordan. Adam discusses the start of his career, as well as the success of his new album.

March 30, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Boise, ID at the Knitting Factory.

March 31, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Spokane, WA at the Knitting Factory.

April 1, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Seattle, WA at the Paramount Theater.

April 2, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Vancouver, Canada at The Centre.

April 3, 2010

  • Owl City performs with Lights and Paper Route in Portland, OR at Roseland Theater.

April 5, 2010

  • Owl City performs in San Francisco, CA at The Fillmore.

  • Owl City uploads a video to its YouTube channel where Adam discusses the story of how he came to perform and write music under the Owl City moniker.

April 6, 2010

  • Owl City performs in San Francisco, CA at The Fillmore.

April 7, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Pomona, CA at the Fox Theater.

April 8, 2010

  • Owl City performs in San Diego, CA at the Soma.

April 9, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Los Angeles, CA at Club Nokia.

April 10, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Phoenix, AZ at the Marquee Theatre.

April 12, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Magna, UT at The Great Saltair.

April 13, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Denver, CO at the Ogden Theatre.

April 14, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Tulsa, OK at Reynolds Center.

April 15, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Austin, TX at Stubb's BBQ.

April 16, 2010

  • Owl City uploads a new music video for the song, "Umbrella Beach" to its YouTube channel. Adam does not appear in the music video apart from photos on a table. The video was filmed in Hope Cove, England.

  • Owl City performs with Lights and Paper Route in Houston, TX at Verizon Wireless Theater.

April 17, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Dallas, TX at Nokia Theatre.

April 19, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Nashville, TN at War Memorial.

April 20, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Atlanta, GA at The Tabernacle.

April 22, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Washington, D.C. at DAR Constitution Hall.

April 23, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Boston, MA at the House of Blues.

April 24, 2010

  • Owl City performs in New York City, NY at Terminal 5.

April 25, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Philadelphia, PA at the Electric Factory.

` April 27, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Toronto, Canada at the Sound Academy.

April 28, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Cleveland, OH at the House of Blues.

April 29, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Royal Oak, MI at the Royal Oak Music Theatre.

April 30, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Chicago, IL at the Aragon Ballroom.

May 1, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Minneapolis, MN at the State Theater.

May 2, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Milwaukee, WI at the Eagles Ballroom.

May 4, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Des Moines, IA at the Val Air Ballroom.

  • Lights releases a remix by Adam of their new song entitled "Saviour".

May 5, 2010

  • Owl City performs in St. Louis, MO at The Pageant.

May 8, 2010

  • Owl City's third single from the current album, entitled "Umbrella Beach", enters the UK Dance Chart at number 25, later peaking at number 12.

  • Adam announces the debut album and release date for Sky Sailing's "An Airplane Carried Me To Bed" on the project's MySpace page. He also releases demo versions of 2 songs from the album, entitled "Brielle" and "I Live Alone".

  • Owl City performs in Glasgow, Scotland at the Barrowlands.

May 9, 2010

  • Owl City performs in London, England at O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire.

May 11, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Paris, France at Elysee Montmartre.

May 12, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Cologne, Germany at E-Werk.

May 16, 2010

  • Owl City's single from the current album entitled "Umbrella Beach" is released.

  • Adam, on "Umbrella Beach": "Umbrella Beach is about a hermit living in a box car on the edge of the shoreline that corroded so badly, it wound up at the bottom of the bay. Rather than finding a new home, the hermit chooses to learn to scuba dive and now spends his days deep under the waves in his boxcar."

May 26, 2010

  • HM Magazine publishes an article on the upcoming release of Adam's new album under the Sky Sailing moniker.

June 1, 2010

June 7, 2010

June 14, 2010

June 21, 2010

June 28, 2010

  • Owl City uploads a video of various "road stories" to its YouTube channel.

June 29, 2010

  • A teaser for Adam's new upcoming album under the name "Sky Sailing" is uploaded to the Owl City YouTube channel.

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "A Letter from Adam Young"

June 30-July 3, 2010

  • Around this time, Adam travels to attend his longtime friend Tony Johnson's wedding.

  • Adam: "As an extremely average kid without the lengthiest list of friends in the world, I’ll admit I’ve only attended a handful of weddings in my day. However, I’ve driven home from each of them with such a unique rush of feeling, it’s almost indescribable. You know how you watch a REALLY good movie and leave the theater far more impressed and inspired than you ever expected you’d be? It’s some sort of wildly sentimental atmosphere where solemnity and happiness collide. A heavy-handed seriousness, a sacred significant feeling. I felt like I’d just finished the last page of a good book I never wanted to end. A marvelous marriage it was, and I, tremendously happy for the two who exchanged vows, rings and ultimately hearts."

July 6, 2010

July 9, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Warsaw, Poland at Torwar Hall.

July 12, 2010

July 13, 2010

  • Sky Sailing's first album, An Airplane Carried Me To Bed, is released by Universal Republic. This project moves away from Adam's usual electronica genre of music and introduces acoustic guitar and piano accompaniments into his work. The unrefined tracks were recorded in the summer of 2006 before he began making music as Owl City.

  • Adam, on "An Airplane Carried Me To Bed": "I've kept these recordings secret for a long time and they've never seen the light of day until now. Long before Owl City was ever a spark of a flame, a lot of blue-collared working days were spent absentmindedly daydreaming about what would ultimately become this collection of songs. From the perfectionist musician's perspective, a song is never truly 'finished' but rather 'abandoned' and thus, after a lot of inspiration and reckless experimentation, I emerged from the basement with an 11 song record which I affectionately entitled, An Airplane Carried Me To Bed."

July 14, 2010

  • A fan-made music video for the newly-released song for Adam's Sky Sailing project, entitled "Captains of the Sky", is uploaded to YouTube.

July 16, 2010

  • Inception is released in U.S. theaters. Around this time, Adam and his dad see the movie together.

  • Adam: "Me and my dad went to see it. He thought it was stupid and I thought it was great, though I think one of the things that is so likable about it is the ambiguity. It's designed to be likable without being overtly obvious, and that I enjoy."

July 19, 2010

July 26, 2010

July 28, 2010

  • Sky Sailing uploads a new music video for the song "Brielle" to its YouTube channel.

August 1, 2010

  • Adam collaborates with high-profile British electronic composer, producer, musician, and songwriter Nick Bracegirdle. Under his Chicane alias, Bracegirdle's single "Middledistancerunner" is released on Modena Records. The track features Adam on vocals. This is the first single from the fourth Chicane album entitled Giants.

August 2, 2010

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "Oh Dear"

August 4, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Toronto, Canada at the Molson Amphitheater.

August 5, 2010

  • Owl City is set to perform in Clarkston, MI at DTE Energy Music Theater, but is cancelled for unforeseen circumstances.

August 6, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Noblesville, IN at the Verizon Wireless Music Theater.

August 7, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Canandaigua, NY at CMAC.

August 9, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Mansfield, MA at the Comcast Center.

August 10, 2010

August 11, 2010

  • Idolator publishes an article where Adam is interviewed about his new Sky Sailing album, his previous side projects, as well as his thoughts on possibly collaborating with other artists in the future.

  • Adam: "I wrote and recorded the record over the course of several months in 2007, mastered it and put it in the can. Between then and now, Owl City began to take off and I've only just found time to dig the Sky Sailing record out again and haul it up from the basement into the light of day. Aside from some mixing work and a couple vocal overdubs, An Airplane Carried Me to Bed is exactly the way it was when it was first completed over three years ago."

  • Owl City performs in Wantagh, NY at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater.

August 13, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Bristow, N.VA at Jiffy Lube Live.

August 14, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Camden, NJ at the Susquehanna Bank Center.

August 15, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Holmdel, NJ at the PNC Bank Arts Center.

August 16, 2010

August 17, 2010

  • Glacier Island's first album, From Pelican Shores, is released by Stairwell Studios. The project, previously known as The Atlantic, is fronted by Andy and Tony Johnson and contains similar production and stylings as Adam's Owl City project.

August 18, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Phoenix, AZ at the Cricket Wireless Pavilion.

August 20, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Mountain View, CA at the Shoreline Amphitheatre.

August 21, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Wheatland, CA at the Sleep Train Amphitheatre.

August 22, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Los Angeles, CA at the Hollywood Bowl.

August 24, 2010

August 25, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Chula Vista, S.CA at the Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre.

August 28, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Honolulu, HI at the Pipeline Cafe.

August 30, 2010

  • Adam write an article on his blog. "Aloha"

August 31, 2010



  • The soundtrack for the upcoming film, Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, is released. The album features a brand new single from Adam, entitled "To The Sky", which was written as the title track for the film.

  • Owl City performs in Salt Lake City, UT at the USANA Amphitheatre.

September 1, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Morrison, CO at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

September 3, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Tulsa, OK at the BOK Center.

September 4, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Dallas, TX at Gexa Energy Pavilion.

September 5, 2010

  • Owl City performs in The Woodlands, TX at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion.

September 6, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Orange Beach, AL at Amphitheater at the Warf.

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "You Had Me At Hello"

September 8, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Atlanta, GA at Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood.

September 10, 2010

  • Adam announces Owl City University, which serves as the official online fan community for Owl City.

  • Along with the announcement, Adam writes a message to fans. "I've never been much of a student, but it is with great pride that I announce the opening of Owl City U - the Official Owl City Fan Community. Located on the banks of Sky Harbor, Owl City University's sprawling campus is the perfect place to meet fellow Owl City fans. Encompassing a wide variety of centers and programs, libraries, museums and administration support offices, there is plenty to see and discover. You can complete assignments and get involved in student organizations, keep up with the latest news and tour dates, download exclusive content, and much more! Applications are now being accepted - commence your scholarly journey at Owl City U today. See you around campus!" Adam Young Dean of Students

  • Owl City performs in Tampa, FL at the Ford Amphitheatre.

September 11, 2010

  • Owl City performs in West Palm Beach, FL at the Cruzan Amphitheater.

September 12, 2010

  • Owl City performs a "Secret Show" for MySpace in Atlanta, GA at The Loft. The show is live streamed on the site.

September 13, 2010

September 15, 2010

  • Owl City uploads a new music video for the song "To The Sky" to its YouTube channel. The song is set to be included in the upcoming film, "Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole".

September 18, 2010

  • Owl City performs in West Springfield, MA at the Eastern States Exposition.

September 20, 2010

September 24, 2010

  • Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole is released in theaters. It features a track written by Adam, entitled"To The Sky", which was penned as the theme to the film. The song is featured prominently within the film and then plays again during the end title sequence. It is the first new Owl City song to be released since Summer 2009's Ocean Eyes.

  • Adam, on "To The Sky": "It is such an incredible honor to be part of this film. As a fan of both the children's book series growing up, and Zack Snyder's work as a director, having my music included is pretty surreal. I've been waiting for someone to make a movie like this for some time now. I'm endlessly grateful to be involved."

September 27, 2010

October 4, 2010

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "Winter"

October 11, 2010

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "Hockey"

October 18, 2010

October 25, 2010

  • Adam releases a cover version of the praise and worship song "In Christ Alone" as a streaming MP3 on his website. The song later garners attention on Christian radio stations.

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "My Hope Is Found"

October 30, 2010

  • Windsor Airlift's third album, Flight, is released independently. Some unreleased recording bits the band did before Adam's departure were merged into the album.

October 31, 2010

  • Owl City performs Owatonna, MN at Owatonna Senior High School. This is also the only time Adam performs at his school. The concert is done as a fundraiser for the school's music and arts program.

  • Joan Young (Adam's Mother): "Every school is struggling these days, so the timing of this is perfect... He never was very outgoing in school, so it's amazing seeing him here now, center stage."

  • Matt Thiessen opens for Owl City. During his performance, he plays an early version of a song called "Plant Life", which is said to be featured on the next Owl City album. This version features different lyrics and an altered song structure.

November 1, 2010

November 4, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Osaka, Japan at the Big Cat.

November 5, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Nagoya, Japan at Club Quattro.

November 6, 2010

  • Owl City performs in Tokyo, Japan at Shibuya AX.

November 8, 2010

November 9-13, 2010

  • Due to scheduling conflicts, Owl City postpones its fall Australian tour.

November 15, 2010

November 22, 2010

  • Owl City's Christmas single, Peppermint Winter, is released by Universal Republic.

  • Adam, on "Peppermint Winter": "Peppermint Winter is about my own participation in snowball fights and sidewalk shoveling. Sleigh rides, present-giving and receiving and of course, the ingestion of marvelous Yuletide nutrition (or lack thereof), namely sugar cookies, hot chocolate and peppermint candy canes."

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "You Are Braver Than You Believe"

November 24, 2010

  • Andy Johnson records and uploads a cover of Adam's song, entitled "Sky Diver", to his YouTube channel.

November 29, 2010

December 6, 2010

December 10, 2010

  • Owl City's new holiday single, entitled "Peppermint Winter", peaks at number 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.

December 13, 2010

December 20, 2010

  • Adam updates his blog with a short audio clip of him singing a newly-written song, entitled "Comfy - Cozy Christmas". He also includes a message to his fans in the form of the song's lyrics.

"To my friends who read the blog,

pour yourselves another eggnog 'cause without

you, I don't know where I would be.

Merry comfy cozy Christmas!

From,

Owl City

Merry Christmas (and a pair of cowboy boots),

Adam"

December 27, 2010

  • Adam writes an article on his blog. "Hy-Vee"

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